Ten schools take part in the Cheshire Challenge at Thornton Science Park

Mansi Gupta and Freya Walsh from The King’s School, Chester, with Dr Helen Faulkner and Dr Steve Bosworth; the Lord Lieutenant of Cheshire, David Briggs; on the right are Jennifer Russell and India Nellist from Upton-by-Chester High School with Mr Steve Lydiate (Image: UGC)

Around 100 school pupils from across the area took part in the Cheshire Challenge at Thornton Science Park in Ellesmere Port.

Science and Technology Challenge Days are arranged across the UK for gifted and talented Year 8 and 9 students.

Ten schools took part in the Cheshire Challenge, where mixed school teams undertook a series of practical applied science or technology related challenges, led by members of a team of students, including from the University of Chester’s Faculty of Science and Engineering.

Read More

A robot challenge – where the teams had to design and build robots using the latest Lego Mindstorm EV3 kit. The students were asked to programme the infrared and light sensors, to avoid a series of obstacles on the track.

E-fit challenge – a short sketch was acted out where someone’s wallet is stolen. The young people then used commercial E-fit software to generate an image of the ‘thief’. The ‘thief’ appeared at the end for students to see how accurate their images were.

Read More

Electric car challenge – the students designed and built a battery-operated vehicle using plastic kit pieces. The team’s vehicles then raced against each other. Young people were encouraged to investigate how design affects the speed and power of their vehicle.

Brain diagnostics – the students took on the role of a doctor investigating a neurological illness. They questioned the patient, examined X-rays, and looked at scans of their brain activity. They then investigated how technology is used to improve the lives of people with similar illnesses.

HE STEM co-ordinator in the faculty of science and engineering at the University of Chester, Angela Lupton, said: “This was a fantastic opportunity for school pupils to see what they could achieve – while undertaking really interesting and enjoyable challenges.

“There were prizes for the winning teams and runners-up in each of the categories. The prizes were presented by the Lord Lieutenant of Cheshire, David Briggs, who also gave an encouraging talk to students.